Delphi Complete Works of Richard Brinsley Sheridan

by Richard Brinsley Sheridan

  Mr. Sheridan next read the letter of the Begum to Mr. Hastings, complaining of the suspicions which had been so unjustly raised of her conduct; and referring to Capt. Gordon who could testify her innocence. He also read the letter of Capt. Gordon to the Begum, thanking her for her interference, and acknowledging that he owed his life to her bounty. It had been asked with an air of some triumph, why Capt. Gordon was not called to that Bar? He had answered then as now that he would not call on a man, who, in his affidavit, had suppressed all mention of this important transaction. He trusted, that if ever he saw him at that bar, he should witness a contrite zeal to do away the effects of that silence, and behold a penitential tear for the part he had then taken. He hoped, however, for the honor of human nature, that Capt. Gordon was then under a delusion — and that he was led on by Mr. Middleton, who was well informed of the business, to act a part o which he did not know the consequences. Every feeling of humanity recoiled from the Transaction taken in any other point of view. It was difficult to imagine that any man could say to a Benefactor,

  “The breath that I now draw, next to heaven I owe to you; — my existence is an emanation from your bounty — I am indebted to you beyond all possibility of return, and therefore, — my GRATITUDE shall be your DESTRUCTION.”

  The original letters on this occasion from Colonel Hannay and Captain Gordon to the Begum, had been transmitted by her through Major Gilpin to Mr. Middleton, for the purpose of being shewn to Mr. Hastings; but the leaves were torn from Mr. Middleton’s letter-book in the place where hey should have appeared. When examined on this subject, he said, that he had deposited Persian copies of those letters in the office at Lucknow, but that he did not bring translates with him to Calcutta — because he left Lucknow the very day after he had received the originals. This excuse, Mr. Sheridan said, he could boldly assert, was a flat and decided perjury! It could be proved, by corresponding dates, that Middleton had received those letters at least a month before he left Lucknow. He departed from that City on the 17th of October, but must have received those letters before the 20th of the preceding Month. He was therefore well aware of the purity of those, in whose oppression he was engaged; he knew that their attachment was fully proved, at the very time when they were charged with disaffection; but as their punishment was predetermined, he in concert with his Principal, found it necessary to suppress the testimonials of their Innocence. — This Mass of Fraud and Cruelty, covered as it had been by every art which the vile Agents could devise, was now bared to the View, by the aid of that Power who can give a Giant’s nerve even to an Infant Arm. — The injured sufferers, with tears more powerful than Argument, and with sighs more impressive than Eloquence, supplicated their Lordships’ Justice, and called for that retribution which should take place on the detested, but unrepenting Author of their wrongs!

  The benevolent interference of the Begum, in favor of Capt. Gordon, had been assigned by Mr. Hastings in his Defence, to her intelligence of the successes of the English at that period. — That this allegation was founded in manifest falsehood, could very easily be proved. — The only success which the British forces at that time met with, was that of Col. Blair, on the 3d of September, but where he himself acknowledged that another victory, gained at such a loss, would be equal to a defeat. — The reports spread around the country, at the time, were of the most unfavorable cast — that Mr. Hastings had been slain at Benares, and that the English were every where routed: — These reports, it was to be remarked, were of infinitely more consequence to the present argument, than the facts which really occurred; but if any doubt remained on the mind of any man, it was only necessary to recur to a neverfailing evidence, in that of Mr. Hastings against himself. — In a letter to the Council, which was on record, Mr. Hastings acknowledged that from the 22d of August to the 22d of Sept. which included of course the time of Captain Gordon’s liberation, he had been confined in a situation of the utmost hazard; that his safety, during that time, was extremely precarious, and that the affairs of the English were generally thought to be unfavorable in the extreme! In his defence, however, these admissions were totally forgotten; there was also an observable inconsistency in what was there alledged: that Colonel Hannay had written to the Begum in the style of supplication — because, in the desperate situation of affairs, he knew of no other which he could adopt; and yet, in the same sentence it was averred, that the Begums had procured the release of Captain Gordon — from her knowledge of the prosperous advances of our army! — It appeared, therefore, beyond the possibility of a doubt, that those Princesses had demonstrated the firmness of their attachment to the English, not in the moment of success — not from the impulse of fear, nor from the prospect of future protection; — but at a time when the hoard of collected vengeance was about to burst over our heads; when the measure of European guilt in India, appeared to be completely filled, by the oppressions which had just then been exercised on the unfortunate Cheit Sing; and when Offended Heaven seemed to interfere, to change the meek disposition of the Natives, to awaken their Resentments, and to inspirit their Revenge!

  The second, of the remaining parts of the Charge against the Begums, was their having enflamed the Jaghirdars. It was evident, however, even from the letters of Mr. Middleton himself, that no such aid was wanted to awaken resentments, which must unavoidably have arisen from the nature of the business. — There were many powerful Interests concerned; — the Jaghires, which were depending were of a vast amount, and as their owners by the Resumption would be reduced at once to poverty and distress, their own feelings were sufficient to produce every effect which had been described. It was idle, therefore, to ascribe to the Begums, without a shadow of proof, the inspiring of sentiments, which must have existed without their interference.

  “I shall not waste the time of the Court, said Mr. Sheridan, on such a subject, but appeal to your Lordships individually, to determine whether on a proposal being made to confiscate your several estates, — and the magnitude of the objects are not very unequal, — the interference of any two Ladies in this Kingdom would be at all necessary to awaken your Resentments, and to rouse you to opposition, &c.”

  The Discontents which prevailed in the Province of Oude, had been also and with similar justice attributed to these Princesses, and formed the third and last Article of Charge against them. But the Conduct of the Officers residing in that Province, the repeated complaints from the Natives, and the acknowledged rapacity of Col. Hannay left no difficulty in tracing those discontents to the source where they had originated. The Nabob himself was so well convinced of the tyranny of Col. Hannay, that on a proposition coming from Mr. Hastings, to send him back into the Province, the Nabob swore by Mahomet,

  “that if the Colonel was sent back, he would quit the Province, and come to reside with Mr. Hastings.”

  The Governor General some time after sent an apology for the suggestion, but it was then too late — Col. Hannay was dead — and the Province was desolate! If a Stranger just arrived, and ignorant of every former transaction were then to survey the once fertile plains of Oude, he would ask, —

  “What savage Invader had waged such terrible Hostilities against the bounties of Heaven and the works of Man?”

  What Civil Fury, or what Religious Frenzy had depopulated the scene, even to a Waste of Desolation? What pernicious Monster, sent by vindictive Heaven, had swept through its plains, and with pestiferous breath, blasted all it could not consume? — To these questions some native with a tearful eye, and subdued aspect, would have answered —

  “that no War, no Dissentions, no Monster had produced those effects, which were all owing — to an alliance with the English! — and that this disastrous connection had been fraught with more ills, than the most incensed enemy could desire, or a merciful Providence descend to inflict!”

  That this representation was not exaggerated, would appear from the description of Maj. Naylor, who had succeeded Colonel Hannay, and who had previously saved him from the vengeance
which the assembled riots, of husbandmen, were about to take on their oppressor. The progress of extortion, it appeared, had not been uniform in that province: — it had absolutely increased as its resources failed, and as the labor of exaction became more difficult, the price of that increased labor had been charged as an additional tax on the wretched inhabitants! — At length, even in their meek bosoms, where injury never before begot resentment, nor despair aroused to courage, encreased oppression had its due effect. They assembled round their Oppressor, and had nearly made him their sacrifice. So deeply were they impressed with the sense of their wrongs, that they would not accept of even life from those who had rescued Col. Hannay! They presented themselves to the swords of the soldiery, and as they lay bleeding on the banks of their sacred stream, they comforted themselves with the ghastly hopes that their blood would not descend into the soil; but that it would ascend to the view of the GOD of NATURE, and there claim a retribution for their wrongs! — Of a people thus injured, and thus feeling, it was an audacious fallacy to attribute the conduct to any external impulse. — That GOD, who¯ gave them the Form of Man, implanted also the wish to vindicate the Rights of Man. Tho’ simple in their manners, they were not so uninformed as not to know — that Power is in every State a trust reposed for the general good; and that the trust being once abused, should of course be instantly resumed.

  Though the Innocence of the Begums, Mr. Sheridan continued, was thus proved beyond a possibility of doubt, it could not but be allowed that he argued fairly, if he did not immediately infer, from that proof, the guilt of Mr. Hastings. He would go so far as to admit, that Mr. Hastings might have been deluded by his Accomplices, and have been persuaded into a conviction of a criminality which did not exist; if that were proved, he would readily agree to acquit the Prisoner of the present Charge. But if, on the contrary, there appeared, in his subsequent conduct, such a concealment, as denoted the fullest conciousness of guilt; if all his narrations of the business were marked with inconsistency and contradiction, that mind must be inaccessible to conviction, which could entertain a doubt of his criminality. — From the month of Sept. in which the seizure of the Treasures took place, until the January following, had Mr. Hastings wholly concealed the transaction from the Council at Calcutta! If any thing could be more singular than this concealment, it was the reasons by which it was afterwards attempted to be justified. Mr. Hastings first pleaded a want of leisure. He was writing to the Council, at a time when he complained of an absolute inaction: — he found time to narrate some pretty Eastern tales, respecting the attachment of the Seapoys to their cannon, and their dressing them with flowers on particular occasions — but of a Rebellion which convulsed an Empire — of the seizure of the Treasures to such an amount, he could not find leisure to say one syllable until he had secured an Excuse for his Conduct in the Possession of the Money! — The second Excuse was, that all Communication was cut off with Fyzabad; and this was alledged at the time, when letters were passing daily between him and Mr. Middleton, and when Sir Elijah Impey had pronounced the Road to be as free from interruption, as that between London and Brentford. — The third Excuse was, that Mr. Middleton had taken with him on his departure from Chunar all the original papers which it was necessary for Mr. Hastings to consult! — That the original papers had not been removed, was evident, however, from Mr. Hastings sending a copy of the Treaty of Chunar to Mr. Middleton on the fourth day after the Resident’s departure; though it appeared that it was after to be reinclosed at a proper time to Mr. Hastings, to be shewn to the Council. A Copy of the same had been shewn to the Oriental GROTIUS, Sir Elijah Impey, which he confessed his having read at the time when he declared his ignorance, of the guarantee granted to the Princesses of Oude! Looking to the absurdity of reasons, such as these assigned in Defence of a silence so criminal; Mr. Sheridan declared, that he would lay aside every other arguments — that he would not dwell on any other topic of guilt; if the Counsel for Mr. Hastings would but join issue on this point, and prove, to the satisfaction of the Court, that any of these excuses were in the smallest degree sufficient for the purpose for which they were assigned.

  Amidst the other artifices of concealment, was a letter from Col. Hannay, dated Oct. 17, 1781, which Mr. Sheridan proved beyond dispute, could not have been written at the time, but was fabricated at a subsequent period, as it contained a mention of facts, which could by no possibility have been known to Col. Hannay, at the time when it was pretended to have been written. — Whatever else could be done for the purpose of concealment, was done in that mixture of canting and mystery, of rhapsody, and enigma —

  “Mr. Hastings’ Narrative of his journey to Benares.”

  — He there set out with a solemn appeal to heaven for the truth of his averments, and a declaration of the same purport to Mr. Wheeler: the faith, however, thus pledged, was broken both to God and man, for it was already in evidence, that no single transaction had occurred as it was there stated!

  The question would undoubtedly occur to every person who had attended to these proceedings —

  “Why Mr. Hastings had used all these efforts to veil the whole of this business in mystery?

  — It was not strictly incumbent on him to answer the question, yet he would reply, that Mr. Hastings had obviously a bloody reason for the concealment. — He had looked to the natural effect of strong injuries on the human mind; as in the case of Cheit Sing, he thought that oppression must beget resistance; and the efforts which might be made by the Begums in their own Defence, tho’ really the effect, he was determined to represent as the cause of his proceedings. — Even when disappointed in those aims by the natural meekness and submission of those with whom he was to act; he could not abandon the idea, — and accordingly, in his letter to the Directors, of Jan. 5, 1782, had represented the subsequent disturbances in Oude, as the positive cause of the violent measures which he had adopted — two months before those disturbances had existence! — He there congratulates his masters on the seizure of those treasures, which, by the Law of Mahomet, he assures them were the property of Asophul Dowla; thus the perturbed spirit of the Mahometan law, according to Mr. Hastings’ idea, still hovered round those treasures, and envied them to every possessor, until it at length saw them safely lodged within the sanctuary of the British Treasury! — In the same spirit of piety, Mr. Hastings had assured the House of Commons, that the inhabitants of Asia believed that some unseen power interfered, and conducted all his pursuits to their destined end. — That Providence, however, which thus conducted the efforts of Mr. Hastings, was not the Providence to which others profess themselves indebted; which interferes in the cause of virtue, and insensibly leads guilt towards its punishment; it was not in fine that Providence.

  “Whose works are goodness, and whose ways are right.”

  The unseen power which protected Mr. Hastings, operated by leading others into criminality, which as far as it respected the Governor General, was highly fortunate in its effects. — If the Rajah Nundcomar brings a charge against Mr. Hastings; Providence so orders it, that the Rajah has committed a Forgery some years before, which, with some friendly assistance, proves a sufficient reason to remove out of the way so troublesome an acquaintance. — If the Company’s Affairs are deranged through the want of Money, Providence ordains it so that the Begums, though unconsciously, fall into a Rebellion, and give Mr. Hastings an opportunity of seizing on their Treasures! Thus the successes of Mr. Hastings depended not on any positive merit in himself; it was to the inspired FELONIES, the heaven-born CRIMES, and the providential TREASONS of others that he was indebted for each success, and for the whole tenor of his Prosperity!

  It must undoubtedly bear a strange appearance that a man of reputed Ability should, even when acting wrongly, have had recourse to so many bungling artifices, and spread so thin a veil over his deceptions. But those who testified any surprize at this circumstance, must have attended but little to the demeanor of Mr. Hastings. Through the whole course of his conduct, he
seemed to have adhered to one General Rule — to keep as clear as possible off the fact which he was to related — Observing this maxim, his only study was to lay a foundation as fanciful and as ornamented as possible; then by a superadded mass of fallacies, the superstructure was soon complete, tho’ by some radical defect it never failed to tumble on his own head; — Rising from those ruins, however, he was soon found rearing a similar edifice, but with a like effect. — Delighting in difficulties, he disdained the plain and secure foundation of Truth; he loved, on the contrary, to build on a precipice, and to encamp on a mine. — Inured to falls, he felt not the danger, and frequent defeats had given him a hardihood, without impressing a sense of the disgrace.